Amy Winehouse had one of the greatest voices of soul music of all time. She died too early, and it’s a terribly depressing, tragic thing. She joined the famous “27” club, immortalized forever alongside her young adult brethren and sisters Kurt Cobain, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin. Though it’s only been four short years, 2011 seems like a lifetime ago. The fact that there’s a documentary about her beautiful rise and her crushing fall seems appropriate, and I’m glad there’s been some time to process, collect, and contextualize Amy Winehouse’s life without immediately jumping onto the “let’s make money off of this” bandwagon. This is particularly heightened when the director is someone as powerful as Asif Kapadia, who directed the phenomenal documentary on Ayrton Senna – another tragically lost ray of light.

The documentary, which has just screened at Cannes to overwhelmingly positive reactions, will remind us all of what a significant talent we lost. She didn’t even reach her peak, but the hope is that this documentary will allow us to imagine it.

About the author

Marco Margaritoff

I grew up in Hamburg to a German father and Ecuadorian mother. Obsessive student of film, Hip-Hop, and stand-up comedy. I love the dark dreambox that is the cinema auditorium. I love mountains and the ocean, but am equally exhilarated by the jungle of the city. I hope to one day create something that hits someone in the brain with thunderous effect.